Affiliation:
1. National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center College of Engineering and Applied Sciences Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Artificial Functional Materials Nanjing University Nanjing 210093 P. R. China
2. National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center School of Physics Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Artificial Functional Materials Nanjing University Nanjing 210093 P. R. China
3. School of Information Science and Engineering (School of Cyber Science and Engineering) Xinjiang University Urumqi 830046 P. R. China
Abstract
AbstractZinc has been proven to interweave with many critical cell death pathways, and not only exhibits potent anticancer activity solely, but sensitizes cancer cells to anticancer treatment, making zinc supplementation ideal for boosting odds against malignancy. Herein, a smart nanorobot (termed as Zinger) is developed, composed of iRGD‐functionalized liposome encapsulating black phosphorus nanosheet (BPNs) doped zeolite imidazole framework‐8 (BPN@ZIF‐8), for advancing zinc‐promoted photodynamic therapy (PDT). Zinger exhibits photo‐triggered sequential mitochondria‐targeting ability, and can induce zinc overload‐mediated mitochondrial stress, which consequently sensitized tumor to PDT through synergistically modulating reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and p53 pathway. It is identified that Zinger selectively triggered intracellular zinc overload and photodynamic effect in cancer cells, which together enhanced PDT treatment outcomes. Importantly, Zinger shows high efficacy in overcoming various treatment barriers, allowing for effectively killing cancer cells in the complex circumstances. Particularly, Zinger exhibits good tumor accumulation, penetration, and even cell uptake, and can respond to light stimulation to eliminate tumors while avoiding normal tissues, thereby prolonging survival of tumor‐bearing mice. Therefore, the study provides a novel insight in the development of novel zinc‐associated therapy for advancing cancer treatment approaches.
Funder
National Natural Science Foundation of China
Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province
National Key Research and Development Program of China
Subject
Biomaterials,Biotechnology,General Materials Science,General Chemistry